Image thanks to the Kaiser Foundation Apparently the American public doesn’t know.

Does all the noise out of Washington leave you confused?

You have screaming politicians, bleating pundits and loud lobbyists all hurling their spin your way.

The cacophony makes it hard to distinguish truthful statements from spin.

Now a new research poll suggests the nasty noise is blurring the citizens understanding of policy.

A poll done by the Kaiser Family Foundation was released on Monday, measuring the public’s knowledge about America’s health care reform bill.

It seems a large number of uninsured Americans don’t realize the law was created to help them.

The Affordable Care Act (ACA)has been the target of much partisan debate, both during its passage last year and in the most recent session of Congress, when Republicans in the House attempted to repeal it.

Among the numbers gleaned from Kaiser’s poll on the ACA:

it appears that only about half of uninsured people have any idea that help is on the way. And fewer than a third (31 percent) say they think the law will help them obtain health insurance.

A few quick facts on the ACA:

• The act will extend insurance coverage to over 30 million uninsured individuals
• It allows young adults to be covered by their parents’ insurance until the age of 26
• The ACA requires everyone to have some form of health insurance
• Medicaid will be expanded to cover more low-income adults
• New tax credits will be provided to low- and middle-income households to help cover the costs of health insurance

And perhaps most concerning is that misconceptions are increasing.  In a similar poll conducted last December, 72 percent of respondents knew that the ACA would provide financial help to those purchasing health insurance.  In this go round of the poll, only 58 percent knew so.

One reason for these misunderstandings may be that some of the biggest effects of the bills won’t be implemented until 2014.

The president of the Kaiser Foundation also speculates that

People who are busy in their everyday lives (and who are being bombarded by a highly spun, confusing political debate about the ACA), will only understand what a complex law like this does when it is tangible for them…when there is real insurance coverage available for people who don’t have it…These benefits will technically be available in 2014…but will be 2015 or 2016 before there is a real test of awareness and affordability.

However, Washington Post blogger Sarah Kliff writes that this poll shows a failure for both major parties in effectively communicating their message about health care.

Despite their best efforts, Republicans and Democrats see their bases gravitating away from them on health reform. Since March, when the law passed, the number of Republicans who have a favorable opinion has gone up by 9 points. Over that same time period, Democratic approval ratings fell by 10 points…Both sides, it seems are losing the message war.

What do you think?  Are politicians not communicating their message well?  Or will it take time until the benefits go into effect for people to make up their minds about health care reform?

Image Thanks to the Mirror!

A quiet weekend in Britain?  Increased police presence prevents weekend riots.

Mandate or can’t-date?  An appellate court strikes down individual healthcare mandate and a prediction of what comes next.

Losing a good one: trailblazing women’s health advocate Bernadine Healy passes away.

Super PAC strikes!  Stephen Colbert’s political action committee puts out its first campaign ad.

Ernie and Bert – should they or shouldn’t they?  Get married, that is!

Light the fireworks!

As of Wednesday, the brand-spanking new Congress is back in action.  This time with more Republicans!

These new conservatives are promising lots of fireworks in Washington in the months ahead.

Number one target in their sights: the health care reform passed in early 2010.   These new Republicans are determined to get rid of “Obamacare”… a campaign promise which catapulted many of them to victory.

Some congressional newcomers have gone as far as turning down their own government-funded health insurance.

Though the GOP claims to have a mandate from the American people to reverse President Obama’s health care plan, the Republicans are in a tight spot.

They only control the House of Representatives… leaving the Democrats in control of the Senate (and let’s not forget the White House).

Yet, against all odds Republican leadership is fighting on…or just wasting time?  What do you think?

Fretting over getting accepted to your college or grad school of choice? Still resentful of getting rejected from your dream school? Don’t worry — these people got turned down and ended up successes!

The Daily Beast asks, “have you heard the one about health care?”

Pro-health care reform Democrats are being threatened! But Obama’s not being threatened as much!

“So I threw my right then jabbed with my left and piggy went ‘wee wee wee all the way home’” we are sure that’s what was said. What do you think?  Click the pic above and leave your suggestion of a punchy punchline for the Pres.

So, you might have heard, a little think called HEALTH CARE REFORM was recently passed by the political folks in Washington.  You might have been clued in by the mass media coverage… even your grandmother is talking about it.

So if you think all the partisan shouting is over, well we’re sorry to disappoint.

When this new bill goes into law, we will enter a new phase of fighting.. we will be entering a proverbial Thunder-dome of legal wrestling.

We will be entering…The courts!

Pat Wechsler at Bloomburg tells us what’s coming:

Twelve states plan to challenge the constitutionality of the health-care overhaul passed yesterday by the U.S. House, according to statements made today.

Adam Winkler at The Daily Beast tells us what the court challenges are all about:

The argument against the health-care bill focuses on the so-called individual mandate. This is the part of the bill that tries to push everyone into the health- insurance market, including young, healthy people who otherwise might go uninsured.

The WaPo gives us a close-up on one of these groups planning to challenge the new law, the private Virginia school Liberty University. The dean, Mathew Staver says:

Congress clearly lacks the constitutional authority to force individuals to have, or private businesses to provide, health insurance. Congress’ attempt to force health insurance coverage on the nation is a stunning example of what Congress cannot do.

John Schwartz at the NYTimes gives insight to the effects of these challenges:

But constitutional scholars suggest that such cases would likely amount to no more than a speed bump for health care legislation…The reason, they say, is that Congress has framed the mandate as a tax, which it has well-established powers to create.

The Volokh Conspriacy points us to public opinion:

Rasmussen Reports has just released a poll purporting to show that 49 percent of likely voters favor state litigation against the individual mandate, while 37 percent are opposed.

So what do YOU think? Is there a Constitutional challenge here?

With all of the talk of health care reform flying about (seriously, check any news-related website) one issue is often glossed over: what changes will the health care reform bill actually generate?

Well, we at USDemocrazy have taken the noble task of rounding up wisdom from across the ‘net in order to enlighten you on the what the Democrats’ magnum opus will actually do when it is signed into law (most likely sometime today).

Our good friends (i.e. people whose blog we read) at Crooks and Liars have provided a great top ten list of immediate results. We won’t give you all of them (that’s what the link is for) but here are some highlights:

1. Adult children may remain as dependents on their parents’ policy until their 27th birthday

…

8. Requirement that all insurers must post their balance sheets on the Internet and fully disclose administrative costs, executive compensation packages, and benefit payments.

…

10. AND no more rescissions. Effective immediately, you can’t lose your insurance because you get sick.

For a longer and more in-depth look at the bill’s provisions, check out The Daily Beast’s list of things that are (and are not) in the bill.

Some of you out there may be more visual learners so we’re are happy to provide (well, actually just give you the links to) some great charts.

This LA Times chart is chock full of facts.  It can look overwhelming at first glance, but just take a moment to figure out what each section covers and you can learn a huge amount.

In case you prefer direct interaction the New York Times has given us a wonderfully dynamic chart on how the bill could affect you.  Select your current insurance status and be given a quick blurb on potential outcomes backed up by in-depth information.

Now one thing that is important to keep in mind is that all of these changes won’t happen at once.  Now if only someone would create a timeline of when key rules go into play… Wait a minute! Someone has!  The Washington Post has this WONDERFUL timeline letting you know what to expect when:

Starting…

Within a year

– Provides a $250 rebate to Medicare prescription drug plan beneficiaries whose initial benefits run out.

And ending…

By 2019

– Expands health insurance coverage to 32 million people.

You know what the second best thing about the internet is (after USDemocrazy)?

The fact that for every piece of information, you find hundreds more are waiting to be uncovered.  Due to this fact PLEASE post any useful information on the bill you find.

Remember, we’re all in this together.

We’d like to pretend we understood everything that was going on in the House over the past two days… But, well, we didn’t. (Hey, you try explaining parliamentary procedure!)

So, we’re here to show you what we’ve been reading to educate ourselves on just what happened yesterday when the House (well, the House Democrats, really) voted to pass this historic health care reform legislation.

You might remember last week when we posted on the messy road to getting enough votes for this bill to pass the House. They did it, but keep in mind — the bill still has to pass the Senate. From Time:

The second bill passed by the House late Sunday will make adjustments to the legislation [...] using a process known as budget reconciliation. Such changes would be filibuster-proof in the Senate… Even so, it will be an anticlimax to Sunday’s historic House vote, which will send the underlying Senate bill to President Obama’s desk for signature.

But, it is widely believed that Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid has the votes to pass the bill there too. (Yet CBS indicates that it won’t be easy. Is anything ever easy in that town, though?)

Nevertheless, there was some cause for excitement in Washington, especially amongst Democrats. President Obama gave a powerful statement shortly after passage, indicating that the win is not for a party, but for the people. Watch it here. (We highly recommend!)

Support for the bill amongst the public came greatly from Obama’s Organizing for America activists. The Nation indicates the importance of the organization’s calls and letters to Congresspeople in this article, saying:

In the homestretch [...] the numbers and coverage suggest that OFA was able to channel grassroots support for the bill in effective and even confrontational ways.

And before we get to the part with all of the cynicism and stuff, have a look-see at the top newspaper headlines for what many are calling an historic day from the Newseum.

OK — now the not-so uplifting part. Basically, no one knows who came out winning after this battle has been fought and continues to be fought.

The folks at PoliticsDaily ask “Which Party’s Risky Health Care Bet Will Pay Off in November?” Both sides have their talking points, hoping that their efforts will help their cause come mid-term election time in a few months. They write:

Republicans have stuck to their talking points for months on end. (The bill is a government takeover, it will kill freedom, we can’t afford it, Americans don’t want it, “kill the bill” and “start over.”)

Meanwhile, the Democrats are taking, obviously, a different approach:

Democrats prefer to stress protections for people with insurance, coverage for 32 million people who don’t have it, steps to curb rising costs, and nonpartisan projections that their bill will cut the deficit.

The Los Angeles Times ruminates on how the Democrats will turn this win around into something viable for keeping their majority this fall:

President Obama was spared a devastating defeat, and squabbling lawmakers showed they could accomplish something epic and important in the face of unanimous GOP opposition. That should count for something, they hope, at a time when many voters had written off Washington as utterly dysfunctional.

The Press Secretary himself, Robert Gibbs tweeted (he’s nothing if not on the cusp of media!) this article which sums the whole thing up pretty shortly and concise-ly.

Conservatives and Republicans today suffered their most crushing legislative defeat since the 1960s.

We hope you get something out of these articles when you try to figure out the importance of health care and where in the world it all goes from here. Have an opinion? Question? Snide remarks? Let us know in the comments section!

]]> http://www.usdemocrazy.net/2010/03/22/night-of-passage/feed/ 1 http://www.usdemocrazy.net/2010/03/18/health-care-reform-game-unfinished/ http://www.usdemocrazy.net/2010/03/18/health-care-reform-game-unfinished/#comments Thu, 18 Mar 2010 06:36:50 +0000 ForeverPlaid http://www.usdemocrazy.net/?p=6290

Yes, this is a post about health care! And before you hit the little red X in the right-hand corner of your browser, give us a chance!

We’ll admit, our eyes have been glazing over recently at any mention of health care reform. But we promise, NOW it’s getting interesting! Really!

You see, things are really coming to blows in Congress. The Democrats are counting the votes as they are declared to the press to see if they can’t just pass this bill.

It all started somewhere, but we’re not sure where that was. What we do know is that yesterday, Dennis Kucinich, a cute little gnome Democratic representative from Ohio, agreed to vote for the bill that faces the House now!

Rep. Kucinich said he does not want that President Obama’s legacy as president be tarnished by this slow-going debate. He justified his decision, saying,

Even though I have many differences with him on policy, there’s something much bigger at stake here for America.

Another important win for the health care reform bill was the “yes” vote declared by Democratic representative from Michigan Dale Kildee. This is because Rep. Kildee is an anti-abortion Democrat who had been refusing to vote for the bill on the basis that it would provide subsidies to those needing insurance that could also cover abortion, but not actually covering abortion itself.

Kildee explained his position, saying,

We must not lose sight of what is at stake here – the lives of 31 million American children, adults and seniors – who don’t have health insurance. There is nothing more pro-life than protecting the lives of 31 million Americans.

The business of getting votes in the House (there needs to be 216) is far from over. The Washington Post focused on Pennsylvania representative Jason Altmire, who is among other swing-voters who have gotten a lot of attention recently:

Two planes circled his western Pennsylvania district, trailing banners urging him to vote against the health-care bill. And conservative “tea party” activists confronted him at his office, trying to force him to answer: “Are you for or against the bill?”

And fighting as fervently as ever for this bill to pass is President Obama, who went on FOX news yesterday to get his point across. The president had some trouble getting out full sentences, but eventually made his point. Head over to Washington Post’s “44″ blog to get the low-down and some video.

Though, as many people around the Web are keen to point out, passing health care reform is nowhere near finished. (Oh.) The Washington Whispers blog at US News and World Report reports that the Republican National Committee is threatening that a win on health care for the Democrats means losses for them in the House and Senate in November.

Then there’s this article at Talking Points Memo listing five reasons why HCR won’t pass… including, well, there not being enough votes. Oy vey.

Lastly, MSNBC helps us figure out just all the steps necessary that this bill must go through in order to become something real and tangible. It goes like this: “whip, vote, vote, sign, debate, vote, sign.”

So — the real question is this: If you were a Congressman or Congresswoman, how would YOU vote on health care reform?? Let us know in the comments section!

Here we go again… another weekend, and we here at USDemocrazy are going to wrap up the week like a cheesy burrito.

First an absolutely priceless clip that has been flying around the web.This video, thanks to videogum.com, is “what you see right before you die.”

On to the other news:

New Yuck Yuck Yuck

Things have been rough for Democrats as of late. The party has been hit by a number of resignations and scandals (i.e. Massa’s alleged groping of male staffers). But things in Washington are not nearly as bad as the chaos in the state of New York.

The empire state has had a history of political corruption in the recent past… some of it humorous. One former Rep. John Sweeney who was caught drinking with frat boys. Then there was the New York City Councilman who asked for $177 dollars in reimbursement for a $7 bagel.

Other government misconduct is more serious… such as former State Senate Majority Leader Joe Bruno’s conviction on wire fraud.

Yet the saddest fact of all is that New York has no luck with governors. Their last Governor Eliot Spitzer was forced out of office by a sex scandal. He was replaced by his Lieutenant Governor Patterson who is now embroiled in a scandal of his own. (A full rundown can be found at TalkingPointsMemo.com).

Zamboni!

We here at USDemocrazy have always wanted to drive a Zamboni (we mostly just like the way the name sounds).

Well New York Times automotive journalist Nick Kurczewski (who’s name is also fun to say, do it five time fast now) lived our dream and took to the ice on one of the coolest inventions ever. (The video is worth checking out)

Speaking of Zambonis, this headline should be called Cleaning On Thin Ice.

In Colorado a Zamboni machine was cleaning the ice on Keystone lake. But this time the tables were turned and the ice cleaned the Zamboni. The machine fell through the ice. Though the driver was fine, the poor Zamboni required a crane to fish it out of the frozen lake.

Healthy Signs

The painfully long Health care debate might be close to over. Democratic aides in Washington are saying that their bosses are getting ready to pass a bill.

Democratic hold outs seem to be finally rallying around President Obama’s plan.

The Fix reports a memo from the White House suggests the plan has been gaining supporters ever since the President’s State of The Union Address last month.

The goal of the memo, which is being distributed on Capitol Hill today, is a) build some sense of momentum for the bill in advance of the White House’s March 18 timetable for passage and b) convince wavering Democratic members that their best course of action politically is to pass the bill and move on.

Go! Rush! Go!

Could Rush Limbaugh leave the country? No really… could he please?

Ahh just kidding… But we may not be far off base.

On his show recently the conservative talk show host said if health care passes he would leave the county five years from now when the provisions take effect.

That’s it for the week. We hope you are a little better informed, but if you know more than we do and thought we missed something vitally entertaining, let us know.